The Ultimate Guide to Eating and Drinking Well in Midtown

Aside from some people who live deep in Bushwick and pride themselves on “avoiding Times Square like the plague” (while probably getting the actual, non-figurative plague in their decrepit studio apartments), most New Yorkers and visitors to the city find themselves in Midtown from time to time. Whether you’re taking your grandparents to see Wicked, hitting up a show at MoMA, catching a bus at Port Authority, or, you know, actually working in the neighborhood, it’s crucial to have some go-to restaurants and bars to call upon in times of need.

Yes, the area is strewn with overpriced tourist traps and soul-sucking after-work spots full of tie-loosening bozos. But it’s also home to some truly great eating and drinking experiences, from revered temples of fine-dining to under-the-radar izakayas and—believe it or not—a handful of bars that actually don’t suck. You just have to know where to look. To help you out, we’ve compiled a handy list of our favorite spots, both new and old, that you can find around the Theater District, Radio City, and all the other landmarks of the unavoidable ‘hood. Enter here to unlock the best of Midtown.

Marea

Address and phone: 240 Central Park South (212 582-5100)
Website: marea-nyc.comGood for: Expense-account meals, celebrations
Chef Michael White (Osteria Morini, Ai Fiori) is known as the "Prince of Pasta," and this is the crown jewel in his ever-growing restaurant group. In addition to the pastas—including the famous fusilli with red-wine braised octopus and bone marrow—Marea is known for seafood. Another must-order is the sea urchin crostini with lardo.

Totto Ramen

Address and phone: 366 W 52nd St (212 582-0052)
Website: tottoramen.comGood For: Lunch, dinner (expect to wait)
As the ramen wars rage on in NYC, Totto is currently our favorite spot to slurp noodles. It specializes in chicken paitan broth made with chicken bones and vegetables—order it extra spicy and you'll get a side of the house-made rayu, a delicious chili sauce made with charred-sesame oil, red chili pepper, black pepper, and garlic. The gyoza is also excellent here.

Benares

Address and phone: 240 W 56th St (212 397-0707)
Website: benaresnyc.comGood for: Lunch buffet (11:30am-2pm daily; $12.95), delivery, dinner that doesn't require reservations
One of the more underrated new Indian spots in the city (particularly given its location), Benares is a testament to chef Peter Beck's complete mastery of the subcontinent's cuisine (read his "10 Dishes That Made My Career"), offering a region-hopping menu with a particularly robust selection of seafood and vegetarian dishes. Classics like rogan josh and chicken tikka masala are all on point, but you should dig deeper into the menu to unearth gems like lauki ka kofta—meaty green-squash dumplings covered in cumin-laced paneer and a buttery, tomato-based makhani sauce.

La Grenouille

Address and phone: 3 E 52nd St (212 752-1495)
Website: la-grenouille.com/Good For: Fancy dinner
La Grenouille is one of New York's old-school French stalwarts, where you can order anachronisms like pike quenelles and Provencal-style frog legs knowing that they will be prepared exactly as they should be—the service and technique reflect the five decades of experience. The place is very expensive, but still very good.

Steak 'n Shake

Address and phone: 1695 Broadway (212 247-6584)
Website: steaknshake.comGood For: Lunch, dinner, snack
The Midwest classic arrived in Midtown at the beginning of 2012 and immediately became a contender in the city's ongoing cheap-burger showdown. The caramelization that occurs on the patties from the smash technique is second to none, and the fact that the prices are standardized across all stores nationwide mean that, for Midtown, they are cheap as hell. We can talk about whether Steak 'n Shake is better than Shake Shack—seriously, it's a valid debate.

Danji

Address and phone: 346 W 52nd St (212 586-2880)
Website: danjinyc.com
Good for: Dinner
Danji is probably the closest thing Midtown has to a cool restaurant—think of it as a toned-down Momofuku Ssäm Bar—and it's also the most interesting in terms of what's on the plate. Chef Hooni Kim (Hanjan) takes the advanced techniques he learned while cooking at Daniel and Masa, and applies it to the food of his native Korea. The menu is split into traditional classics and modern riffs—you'll want to order liberally from both sides to try standouts like extra plump and crispy scallion pancakes, addictive bulgogi sliders, and chili-slicked buckwheat noodles with spicy vegetables and chewy whelks. The food here is all about balance—it hits you with spicy, sweet, savory, and funky at every turn.

Blue Bottle Coffee

Address and phone: 1 Rockefeller Plaza, Concourse Level, Suite D
Website: bluebottlecoffee.net
Good For: Coffee
Behold Midtown's bastion of fancy artisan coffee, courtesy of the Bay Area specialists. You can get your single-origin pourovers and next-level lattes, but the standout here is the chicory-laced, extra-smooth New Orleans-style iced coffee. Just do it.

Shake Shack

Address and phone: 691 8th Ave (646 435-0135)
Website: http://www.shakeshack.comGood For: Lunch, dinner, snack
Shack Shack's Midtown location is just as busy as the rest, and just as good. The seating is not ideal but you can still get this burger, so what's the problem?

Halal Guys

Address and phone: 53rd St and Avenue of the Americas
Website: 53rdand6th.comGood For: Late-night
Among the Midtown food-cart titans, Halal Guys have some serious skin in the game. How can you tell them apart from the countless other halal carts on the street? They have fresh-ass uniforms and a much longer line. Be sure to go at night, as the cart that parks there during the day is different.

The Modern

Address and phone: 9 W 53rd Street (212 333-1220)
Website: themodernnyc.comGood For:Business lunch, expense account dinner, celebrations
First We Feast says: The Modern is undoubtedly one of the world's best museum restaurants, perhaps because it's not really a museum restaurant at all by traditional standards, but rather an haute French temple that just happens to bask in the glow of the MoMA. In addition to the main dining room, which is attended to with all the requisite pomp and ceremony, there is a more casual Bar Room that's less of an investment. It's a great place to drink good wine and eat chef Gabriel Kreuther's insanely good tarte flambée, topped with crème fraîche, sliced onions, and smoked bacon.

Rum House

Address and phone: 228 W 47th St (646 490-6924)
Website: edisonrumhouse.comGood For: Pre- or post-theater cocktails
This small barroom, attached to the Art Deco-style Edison Hotel, is a time-machine back to old Times Square, minus the vagrants and smoke stains. These days, you can listen to someone belt out standards on the piano while enjoying some very good classic cocktails—especially the Old-Fashioneds made with different base spirits (try one with rum)—from the folks behind Tribeca's Ward III.

Má Pêche

Address and phone: 15 W 56th St (212 757-5878)
Website: momofuku.com/ma-pecheGood For: Power lunches, celebratory feasts
Critics have snarkily referred to this outpost of the David Chang empire as Momofuku without the rock 'n' roll, but whatever—eating Momofuku food in a quiet dining room free of downtown "cool kids" is actually not so bad. Recently, chef Paul Carmichael took the reigns and the most interesting change he's made is introducing Kappo, a fun and ambitious tasting menu that gets you around 10 courses for $95. There's also a large-format feast option ideal for a gluttonous blowout: two whole fried chickens (4 to 8 guests), smoked lamb shoulder (6 to 10 guests), or a combination of both (10 to 12 guests). Finally, it's worth noting that there is a Milk Bar location here as well, should you get a craving for Crack Pie and Birthday Cake Truffles.

Beer Authority

Address and phone: 300 W 40th St (212 510-8415)
Website: beerauthoritynyc.com
Good For: Craft beer, after-work drinks
A spinoff Rattle N Hum, Beer Authority is craft beer done the Midtown way. That means a massive space with 40 taps, generic pub grub, and an outdoor patio, plus sports on the tube. The thing is, there are usually some genuinely great beers in the mix on those 40 taps, and while it may lack the atmosphere of a downtown beer-nerd haunt, this spot definitely satisfies the itch for hops when you're in a pinch (plus, it's good for groups).

Sake Bar Hagi

Address and phone: 152 W 49th St (212 764-8549)
Website: sakebarhagi.comGood For: Escaping Times Square
The hidden gem of the Times Square area, Sake Bar Hagi would be amazing anywhere, but the fact that it's tucked beneath street level in one of the city's most touristed areas makes it that much more incredible. The place is an izakaya—a Japanese-style pub—with cheap pitchers of beer and a huge menu of home-style, suds-friendly grub like karaage (fried chicken), yakitori, and an unexpectedly great dish of spaghetti tossed with cream and roe (i.e., the Japanese carbonara).

The Shop at the Andaz 5th Avenue

Address and phone: 485 5th Ave (212 601-1234)
Website: newyork.5thavenue.andaz.hyatt.com/theshopGood For: Coffee meetings, breakfast, that in-between time when one person wants coffee and one person wants a glass of wine
Right across from the New York Public Library, the Shop is a little oasis of cool in the chain-dominated Bryant Park area. While it's not quite the Ace, it is a nice place to sit drinking Cafe Grumpy coffee and eating sandwiches on artisanal breads. This is the type of coffee shop that sells coffee table books and small-batch grenadine instead of Michael Bublé CDs.

Toloache

Address and phone: 251 W 50th St (212 581-1818)
Website: toloachenyc.comGood For: Pre- or post-theater dinners, post-work margaritas
There should be a statue erected in honor of chef Julian Medina for bringing bonafide Mexican food to Times Square—seriously, the man deserves more props. The bilevel, mural-clad dining room is always buzzing with Midtown workers, theatergoers, and tourists getting loose off of the tasty margaritas, which you can get with more than 100 different tequilas. And there's more adventurous eating to be done here than you might expect, including Oaxacan-style grasshopper tacos (crunchy!) and the luxe langosta taco, featuring poached lobster sautéed with a chile de arbol salsa, then finished with creamy avocado and chipotle mayo. Many of the entrees are also very good, especially the garlic shrimp on a bed of chayote squash and black beans.

Reunion

Address and phone: 44th St & 9th Ave (212 582-3200)
Website: reunionbar.comGood For: After-work drinks
Reunion is Midtown's greatest surprise: A surf bar hidden below 44th Street, with Endless Summer looped on TV screens and Beach Boys warbling over the speakers. It's weird and kitschy and exactly the right antidote to Times Square—themed tomfoolery without the corporate vibe. There's some decent Franco-Asian bar food, like short-rib sliders with kimchi and sriracha mayo, but it's all about the beach drinks, like a very good dark and stormy, and frozen Coronas kicked up with vodka, triple sec, and lime.

Lantern's Keep

Address and phone: 49 W 44th St (212 453-4287)
Website: lanternskeepny.com
Good For: Cocktails
Besides fancy restaurants like Le Bernardin, Lantern's Keep is currently turning out Midtown's best drinks. The mini library of old cocktail books—The Savoy Cocktail Book, Jerry Thomas’ Bartenders Guide—is reflected in the knowhow of the bartenders, who can fix up a satisfying version of even the most obscure classics. The cozy room, located behind the lobby of the Iroquois Hotel, is very 1920s salon, with velvet chairs and Impressionistic paintings art. (Tip: There's a lantern outside of the hotel on 44th Street—when it's lit up, it means the bar is open.)

Sushi Zen

Address and phone: 108 W 44th St (212 302-0707)
Website: sushizen-ny.comGood For: Sushi
You won't get any Kamikaze or Dragon Rolls here, a hushed temple of raw fish catering mostly to Japanese patrons and folks who can't afford Masa. However, while Sushi Zen is traditional in its service and approach, it lets its freak flag fly when it comes to fish selection, showcasing offbeats options (halfbeak, tilefish) alongside top-notch cuts of the usual suspects.

The Biryani Cart

Address and phone: 46th St and 6th Ave (212 555-1212)
Good For:Lunch
The perennial street-cart king is known for its awesome chicken biryani, featuring smoky bits of moist chicken mixed with yellow rice and an egg boiled in saffron. Other hits include chicken tikka and kathi rolls. Dictate the level of heat you want, but remember that spicy food and the office aren't great bedfellows.

Szechuan Gourmet 56

Address and phone: 242 W 56th St (212 265-2226)
Website: szechuangourmet.netGood For: Lunch, dinner
The glitzy new Hakkasan on 43rd Street may woo bankers with money to blow, but true Chinese-food aficionados stick with Szechuan Gourmet. Yes, the prices are a tad higher than your average lo mein delivery joint, but the quality makes it a comparative bargain, and the lunch menu—available until 3:30—is more affordable. The Szechuan pork dumplings are a standout— succulent and slicked with fiery chili oil. Loyalists swear by the spicy sesame noodles, as well as the more subtle—yet no less delicious—braised fish with chili and miso. Service is generally swift, so expect immediate gratification during a long night at the office or a particularly trying afternoon. To add to its culinary cred, the restaurant has previously been awarded two stars from the New York Times.

Forty Four

Address and phone: 44 W 44th St (212 944-8844)
Website: http://www.royaltonhotel.com
Good For: Cocktails
The lobby bar at Forty-Four is all glammed up with cool, industrial design accents and a dramatic hallway fireplace. While the prices are very "hotel bar in Midtown," the drinks are actually quite good, with hand-chipped iced and all the other cocktail-nerd details. This place is best as an escape on a cold, rainy day.

Burger Joint at Le Parker Meridien

Address and phone: 119 West 56th Street (212 708-7414)
Website: burgerjointny.comGood For: Secretive burgers
Head behind the curtain in the atrium lobby of Le Parker Meridien Hotel to find the city's most beloved "secret" burger spot. The hype is a bit ridiculous, but going to this location (there's now one in the West Village) is still a fun experience, especially if you like grilled burgers, which are less common than the griddled variety in NYC.

Monkey Bar

Address and phone: 60 E 54th St (212 308-2950)
Website: monkeybarnewyork.comGood For: Cocktails, meals with rich people
Monkey Bar is one of the vestiges of old New York—a throwback dining room where you can sit among red-leather booths and original Edward Sorel murals and pretend your a robber baron, or Dorothy Parker. Graydon Carter took over the place a couple years ago and installed an all-star team of big-name chefs, sommeliers, and mixologists—they're all gone now, but the update successfully pulled the restaurant out of the past and gave it some culinary cred. Anyway, you're not really here for the food, but rather the old-school atmosphere. Take old rich people here.

Le Bernardin

Address and phone: 155 W 51st St (212 554-1515)
Website: le-bernardin.comGood For: Fancy meals, blowing your bonus
Simply put, Le Bernardin is one of the city's most accomplished temples of fine dining, and chef Eric Ripert is best known for his mastery of fish. You're either going here to get engaged or to close the biggest deal of your life—or because stunting is a habit and you have money to blow.

Ippudo Midtown

Address and phone: 321 W 51st St (212-974-2500)
Website: ippudony.com
Good For: Ramen
The brand-new location of the cultish Japanese import just opened, and it promised to bring the same hits—porky tonkotsu ramen, addictive pork buns, bubbling pots of tofu—that keeps the hordes lining up every single night down in the East Village.

Esca

Address and phone: 402 W 43rd St (212 564-7272)
Website: esca-nyc.comGood For: Pre- or post-theater dinner
Part of the Batali-Bastianich group, Esca has consistently lived up to its reputation as one of the city's finest seafood restaurants, attending to each day's haul with some Southern Italian flare. Go for the signature crudo—such as sea trout with fresh almonds and razor-clam ceviche with chilies, scallion, and mint—then move on to the excellent pastas.

Don Antonio by Starita

Address and phone: 309 W 50th St (646 719-1043)
Website: donantoniopizza.comGood For: Pre- or post-theater dinner
By far the best place to get pizza in Midtown—if you've been to Keste in the West Village, it's the same pizzaiolo. The speciality here is unique though: the montanara, a fried pizza variant from Naples that is a much more refined (and less greasy) version of fried dough. You should also order the croquettes filled with spaghetti and cured meats.

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